Performance schedule announced for Cleveland Foundation Days at Tri-C JazzFest on June 27 and 28

RELEASE DATE: 6.2.2014

CLEVELAND –– As part of the Cleveland Foundation Days at Tri-C JazzFest, the Cleveland Foundation and Tri-C JazzFest today announced the impressive line-up of performers entertaining crowds for free June 27 and 28 on U.S. Bank Plaza in PlayhouseSquare. Musicians scheduled to appear include Northern soul band Wesley Bright and the Hi-Lites, Latin ensemble Sammy DeLeon & Su Orquesta and trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, who participated in Tri-C’s Jazz Studies program as a Solon High School student and has gone on to national and international recognition in the jazz world.

The outdoor concerts are the largest set of free performances in JazzFest history. The June centennial gift also includes the free concert featuring Gregory Porter at the Ohio Theatre on June 27. All 1,000 tickets for the Porter concert were reserved within 24 hours of the March announcement.

No tickets will be required for the Friday and Saturday outdoor concerts June 27 and 28. The performances will start at 3 p.m. and run until midnight each day on U.S. Bank Plaza, located at E.14th Street and Euclid Avenue.

“One of the goals for our centennial gifts is to create access for the entire community to our area’s greatest assets,” said Robert E. Eckardt, executive vice president of the Cleveland Foundation. “We are proud of the role we have played over the years in helping the JazzFest become one of our nation’s premier jazz festivals. We hope the free concerts will encourage many new festival-goers to discover all that JazzFest has to offer.”

While this year marks the festival’s 35th anniversary, it is also the JazzFest’s debut as a summer music event after decades as a spring tradition. The festival schedule includes 11 ticketed concerts, in addition to the free performances that are part of the Cleveland Foundation Days.

“It is thrilling for us to be a part of the Cleveland Foundation’s centennial gifts,” said Terri Pontremoli, director of Tri-C JazzFest. “The foundation’s support makes it possible for all Greater Clevelanders to experience world-class music and helps us build future audiences for this art form.”

Tri-C JazzFest runs June 26-28 at PlayhouseSquare. Details on ticketed concerts, with seats ranging in price from $22.50 to $65, can be found at www.tri-c.edu/JazzFest.

Visitors to Cleveland Foundation Days at Tri-C JazzFest are encouraged to take the Greater Cleveland RTA. The HealthLine will take concert-goers right to the Ohio Theatre or the U.S. Bank Plaza.

Through its monthly Cleveland Foundation Day birthday gifts to the community in 2014, the foundation is highlighting community assets it has played a role in creating or enhancing throughout its first century, in partnership with its donors. These gifts are open to everyone in the community, not just Cuyahoga County residents.

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The Cleveland Foundation

Established in 1914, the Cleveland Foundation is the world’s first community foundation and one of the largest today, with assets of $2.1 billion and 2013 grants of $89 million. For more information on the Cleveland Foundation, visit ClevelandFoundation.org/purpose and follow us at facebook.com/ClevelandFoundation or @CleveFoundation on Twitter.